egberts



2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

Patented Aug. 16, 1887.

(No Model.)

' M. J. ROBERTS.

CORSET.

N. PETERS. PhnmLi|hogmphr. washingwn, D. l;A

[No Model.) l 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

M. J. ROBERTS.

GGRSET.

No. 368,241.l Patented Aug. 16, 1887.

. INVBNTOR: y@ .2Mb/7^ ATTORNEYS.

N. PETERS, Pmwuuwgnphar. wuhingmm D. c.

xNrrnn STATES Fries.

ATENT CORSET.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 368,241, dated August16, 1887.'

Application filed September 23, 1384. Renewed January 17, 1887. SerialNo. 224,656. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Beit known that I, MILTON Josmir Ron- ERTs, of the city, county, andState of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inCorsets, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to corsets or stays for the support of the humanbody. It is designed especially to support the body and relieve thesufferings of the deformed or crippled. It is also well adapted to thesupport of the body in al1 instances where corsets are or may beadvantageously worn.

To this end it is made ont of wire. The corset is of peculiarconstruction, and is made in a peculiar manner to adapt the same to theuses for which it is intended. XVire corsets have heretofore been madefrom wiregauze in the form of sheets, from which sheets sections havebeen cut in accordance with certain patterns,which sections in turn havebeen molded or stamped in such a manner as to approximately it thecontour of the body to which they are to be applied. These pieces ofwiregauze, cut in accordance with a special pattern, are soldered orotherwise fastened together, so as to form a corset. Corsets have alsobeen made out of a woven fabric in the form of a sheet, in which thethreads running in one direction were of wire and those running at rightangles were of other material. From such sheets sections are cut andswaged up or otherwise brought into the form of a corset.

In my invention I do not use an alreadywoven fabric, nor stamp orotherwise work into form sections from the same.

The distinctive feature of my corset is that it is woven over a forminto curvilinear contour ont of wire strands.

One way in which my corset may be constructed is as follows: First ofall a model is required. If the individual for whom the corset isintended be deformed, a mold of the body is taken in plaster or othersubstance, and from this mold a cast is made. Over this cast or form thecorset is woven. By referring to Fig. 5, which illustrates one of mycorsets partially constructed, a good general idea will be obtained ofthe mode of its construction.

Irior to commencing to weave the corset over the cast or form A, Fig. 5,said cast or form is marked or laid off as required, according to thedesired depth or height of the corset and the number of segments intowhich it is to be divided. The next step is to place upright and obliquestays b I), Fie. 5, upon the cast or form in such positions and of suchstrength and width as desired. These are secured in position by bindingor otherwise attaching them to the cast or form.

B, Fig. 5, is the mark on the cast indicating the limit of the lowermargin of the corset.

Instead of using stays cut from sheet metal, linear segments ofclosely-woveu wire-mesh (see Fig. 9) c b c may be constructed during theprocess of weaving along lines where it is desirable to stiffen thecorset. In this manner the introduction of separate stays is entirelyavoided, the devices substituted forming an integral part of the corset.

In weaving the corset the wires are intertwisted, as shown in Figs 5 and11, commencing at the marginal wiref as a point of attachment, which isheld to the pattern by tacks.

In all instances the contour of the corset corresponds to that of thecast or model A, over which it is woven, and the meshes lie in theplanes ofadaptation to the body. When only two twists are given, as ata, Fig. 1l, the meshes of the corset as thus woven may be crowdedtogether to less transverse dimensions in the same plane, as shown at b,Fig. 1l. This is a distinctive feature of my corsets. Corsets struck upinto form out'of wire fabric do not possess this characteristic. Vhen agreater number of twists are made-- three, for instance, as at c, Fig.Il the meshes are more permanent, it being difficult or impossible tocrowd them into less transverse dimensions.

Sometimes it is desirable to make ten or more twists of the strands ofwire correspond ing to a zone encircling the smallest part of the waist,as shown at d, Fig. 11, andin Figs. 2, 3, 4, 6, l0, and 12. XVhen thecorsetis thus constructed, a belt of ribbon or other fabric providedwith a buckle may be interlaced between these elongated meshes, so as toform a girdle about the waist, which can be tightened in accordance withthe pleasure of the wearer.

In the process of weaving the corset,in passing from the upper orexpanded part of the corset to the waist or smallest circumferentialmeasurement of the corset, and again to the lower or bulging partcorresponding to the hips, if the sa-me number of strands of wire wereused throughout the mesheswould necessarily be very coarse in theexpanded portions and very small in the waist portion of the garment. Toavoid this, and to secure uniformity in the size of' the meshes inpassing from the enlarged upper portion of the corset to the smallerwaist portion, a certain number of wires are cut out and the cut endstwisted about the remaining wires, as shown in Fig. 5 at m. Inproceeding from the waist part of the garment down over the pelvicportion new strands of wire are added, as may be required to maintainthe uniformity in thev size ofthe mesh, as' shown at n, Fig. 5.

In the process of weaving, when the lower margin ofthe corset is reachedeach alternate strand may be cut off. Those that remain may be woven ortwisted together, so, as to form a margin corresponding to the lowerborder of the corset, as indicated by the markings on the cast or formover which it is being woven, (see x, Fig. 9, which shows the lowermargin of the corset as it appears at a point from which the binding ofthe corset is represented as cut away.)

It should be stated that it is desirable in weaving one of my corsets tomake use of wire which has been thoroughly annealed or softened.. By sodoing strands of wire are readily formed into a mesh, which accuratelyfits the model, and which retains its form when removed from the model.The wire is more or less tempered by the process of weaving.

Sections of the corset may be made so as not to yield to transversepressure, not only by'increasing the number of twists of the strands ofwire, as already described, but also by vary-.

ing the pattern of the mesh, as,for instance, by using that pattern ofmesh shyown at-E, Fig. 5.

Woven into form as described, the corset or curvilinear body-brace willnot only retain its shape, but the resiliency in different parts of thegarment may be increased or diminished, as required. v n v A distinctive'feature of my corset, which has already been' alluded tonamely, theweaving of its meshes a, Fig'. 11, so that they may be crowded together,as shown at b, Fig. l1-is especially serviceable when using the corsetfor the correction of certain bodily deformities, as, for instance, inthe treatment of rotary lateral curvature of the spine.' To understandhow this is done it will be necessary to refer to Figs. 7 and 8, whichrepresent plaster casts. Fig. 7 is a back view of the east of the bodyof a patient with vrotary lateral curvature of the spine. An undue prominence exists at b, in the region of the right shoulder, and at c, in theleft lumbar region. An abnormal sinking in of the body exists at a andd. The part above the left hip, e, is too prominent, while that abovethe right hip, f, sinks in too much.

Fig. 8 shows a back view of the same cast after these abnormalities havebeen corrected, as follows: Theabnormal prominence ofthe right shoulder,b, has been cut down, and the corresponding depression under the leftshoulder, a, has' been filled up. Likewise, the undue prominence in theleft lumbar region, at c, has been cut away, while thc correspondingdepression in the right lumbar region,at d,has been lled up.Furthermore, the projection above the left hip, e, has been cut away,while the depression above the right hip, f, has been filled up. 'Ihecast is thus materially improved in form and symmetry in those parts ofthe body above the hips. corrected cast a corset is woven, as alreadydescribed.

When the corset, which is woven over the corrected cast, is applied tothe person of the deformed individual, as represented in the deformedcast, Fig. 7, it will be seen that a corrective pressure must .beexerted upon the abnormally prominent parts,while those parts which aredepressed will `not be pressed upon unduly or at all,in consequence ofthe concavities in the cast at these points having been filled up priorto the weaving of the corset; If,in addition to this, the pattern of themesh which lisv used is such as will permit of the meshes being crowdedtogether, as at b, Fig. 11, a still further corrective action upon theabnormally prominent parts may be exerted in the following manner. rIhecorset having thus been completed and removed from the cast or model,itwill be found lthat by making transverse pressure the meshes between anytwo perpendicular stays can `be crowded together in anylpart of thegarment into less transverse dimensions, as already described. New, bysewing or otherwise attaching a strip of elastic fabric or webbing, oland b2, Fig. 10, and c2 and b2, Fig. 12, to the corset between any twoupright stays, the said webbing will crowd together the meshes of thecorset, and which, when applied tothe body, will exert a correctiveaction, as already described. Now, in order toprevent the possibility ofcrowding the meshes together over the abnormally depressed parts of thebody, as at a and d,

Now, over this Fig. 7,l and thus interfering with their development, Imay, when the corset is thus woven, make use of cross orobliquely-transverse stays, as at fy and a?, Fig. 12. These stays mayoverlie and be secured to the meshes of the corset by a wire or otherdevice, as shown at b', Fig. 5, and extend from one upright stay toanother,to which they are riveted, or may be woven in the corset, as atb', Fig. 9, as hereinbefore mentioned. Sometimes,owing to the weaknessand extreme emaciation of the patient, it is not desirable to exert anypressure upon abnormally prominent parts further than that which isessential to the support of the body. In other words, the aim of the useof the corset in such instances is not to exert a corrective action onthe abnormal prominence, but simply to afford support sufcient to makethe patient comfortable. To this end an exact cast of the body, as shownin Fig. 7, is made. Over this, without any alterations whatever,a corsetis woven of such a pattern of mesh as will not permit of the meshesbeing crowded together-as for instance, the mesh shown in Fig. 5 at E.

In making use of my invention I may use round, flat, or any other shapedstrands, of any kind'of metal or any equivalent for metal. Said strandsof wire,or substitutes therefor,may be plain, or may be covered withthread or other material, or maybe plated with another metal or coatedwith a protective coating. The corset may be of different shapes ofpatterns, according to the requirements of the case. Fig. 5 shows one ofmy corsets partially constructed with pendent strands of wire not yetwoven into a mesh to t the contour of the body.

Fig. l shows a form constructed of one piece as a body-brace for growingchildren. Figs. 2 and 3 show a form of corset for a young or adultfemale, designed as a guide to the cultivation of aperfect form. Fig. 4tshows aform of corset made in three sections adapted to the wants of ahump-backed patient, or one affected with Potts disease of the spine. Incorsets of this pattern constructed for a patient affected with Pottsdisease itis sometimes desirable to weave the posterior segment of apattern of mesh (shown at E, Fig. 5) which cannot be crowded into lesstransverse dimensions than that occupied at the time of weaving. In thisway pressure on the projecting lump is avoided, no matt-er how tightlythe corset may be drawn about the body. Fig. 6 is a corset woven in twosegments to be worn by a patient with an exaggerated deformity in theregion of the right shoulder, resulting from rotary lateral curvature ofthe spine; but it is designed only to render a sufficient amount ofsupport to relieve the discomfort of the patient, and does not aim atexerting a corrective pressure on abnormally prominent parts, havingbeen woven over a cast which exactly corresponded to the contour of thebody. Fig. 7 shows a back View of a plaster cast of a deformed body.Fig. 8 shows a back View of the same plaster cast after theabnormalities have been corrected, as already described. Fig. 9 illus- Ltrates a modified form of stay. Fig. 10 is a back view of a corsetapplied to a corrected cast, over which it has been woven, and providedwith transverse stays and broad pieces of elastic webbing, designed toexert a corrective action when applied to the body. Fig. 11, a b c dillustrate different patterns of meshes; and Fig. 12 illustrates acorset similarly constructed to that shown in Fig. 10, but opened out soas to show more perfectly the extent and direction of the cross-staysai, d, x, and y.

In all of the modications shown it will be perceived that the body ofthe corset is constructed of strands of wire interlaced or woven intothe form of the corset, the resulting fabric being of any desiredcontour, permanency of form, and resiliency. It will be observed that,having been woven over a model, when removed it retains the shape ofthis model as a normal standard, and yet the corset possesses a degreeof iiexibility or resiliency which is not only novel in character, butcan be varied in extent, as already described, to suit the requirementsof different cases.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Leiters Patent, is*

l. A corset or body-brace of curvilinear contour, composed ofintertwisted strands forming meshes which lie in the planes ofadaptation to the contour of the body, substantially as described.

2. A corset or curvilinear body-brace composed of intertwisted strandsforming meshes, which lie in the planes of adaptation to the contour ofthe body, the said meshes having a greater number of twists in someparts of the corset than in others to modify the resiliency of differentparts of the same, substantially as shown and described.

3. A corset or curvilinear body-brace composed of intertwisted strandsforming meshes, which lie in the planes of adaptation to the contour ofthe body, the said corset having in different parts meshes of adifferent pattern for modifying the strength, permanence of contour, andresiliency of different parts ofthe same, substantially as shown anddescribed.

4. A corset or curvilinear body-brace composed of intertwisted strandsforming meshes, which lie in the planes of adaptation to the contour ofthe body, combined with means for exerting an independent tension uponcertain parts of said corset, whereby the meshes are crowded together,substantially as and for the purpose described.

5. A. corset or curvilinear body-brace composed of intertwisted strandsforming meshes, which lic in the planes of adaptation to the contour ofthe body, in combination with stays to secure permanency of contour andprevent the crowding together of the meshes overlying certain parts ofthe body, substantially as set forth.

MILTON JOSIAH ROBERTS.

\Vitn esses:

GEORGE R. ELLIOTT, J. G. MCMURRAY.

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